Line-holder



Patented Apr. 7, 1896..

(No Model.)

J. W. GRAY.

LINE HOLDER. No. 557,800.

ANDREW B GRAHAM.PHOTD-UTHO WASHINGruN n C UNIT D STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOSHUA IV. GRAY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

LINE-HOLDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 557,800, dated April*7, 1896.

Application filed February 16, 1895. Serial No. 538,693. (No model.)

To (all whom, it ntay concern.-

Be it known that I, JOSHUA XV. GRAY, a resident of Chicago, in thecounty of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Line-Holders; and I do hereby declare that thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of referencemarked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to line-holders of the class in which the line,drawn from a fixed point, is held by means of an eccentric or rotary camarranged to oppose a fixed plate; and it has for its primary object toprovide a construction in which the cam is more certainly and positivelymade to seize and hold the line, when drawn taut, without manipulation.

The invention has other and minor objects, which will be pointed out inconnection with the following description thereof.

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate my invention, Figure 1 isa side elevation illustrating the position of the device when secured inplace for use and the normally open and pendent position of the clampingca1n-jaw when not in use, and also a line being drawn taut over the camin the act of putting up or taking down the line. Fig. 2 is acorresponding side view illustrating the cam drawn to the line intoholding position after relaxation of strain upon the portion of the linewhich is held in the hands. Fig. 3 is a front view of the device,illustrating the lateral direction of the portion of the line that leadsfrom the holder to another. Fig. 4 is a top view showing the form of thepart which supports the cam.

A represents a back plate adapted to be secured by screws or similarmeans in a vertical position to a flat surface of a post, building, orother object or structure.

B is a hook-formed bracket projecting forwardly from the back plate A ata right angle thereto, said bracket having an arm b projecting laterallyat its outer end generally parallel with the back plate and a second armI) directed inwardly from the end of the arm 7) toward the back plate.From the inner end of the short arm 5 rises a projection b 0 is a cam oreccentric pivoted upon a pin, which is supported at its ends in theparallel members of the arm l3 and occupies the recess in said bracket.The cam C has its eccentric surface 0 roughened and directed toward theback plate. It is free to turn upon its pivot and is arranged to hang ina position retracted from the back plate A when not engaged by the line,thus affording suitable space for the ready introduction of the linebetween it and the back plate by first throwing the slack line over theprojection 11 and then dropping or drawing the depending part of theline sidewise to that position. By thus pulling upon said depending partof the line it slides over the eccentric face of the cam until taut, andthen, upon the relaxation of this pulling strain, the line, bycontraction of its strained portion leading to'the holder and by itsengagement with the rough or serrated surface of the cam, rotates thelatter upward in opposition to its own gravity and causes it to clampthe line securely against the back plate.

Wh en the line is to be led from this holder to another, this is usuallydone as illustrated in Fig. 3-namely, by leading the portion carried bythe hands laterally beneath the long arm of the bracket B to the nextholder, with which it is similarly engaged. In this manner the line maybe tightened in sections and secured at as many points as may bedesired.

It is to be observed that the back plate A is secured in a verticalplane, which desirably should be as nearly as practicable at a rightangle to the portion of the line leading to the holder. Albeit if thisis not practicable the rising projection 12 will serve to guide the lineleading laterally to the holder from the side, while if the line leadsto the holder from the other side it will slide over the top edge of thelong arm of the bracket B.

In taking down the line a downward pull upon the descending part thereofin the fastening rotates the cam away from the back plate, and While thecam is held in this retracted position a sidewise pull upon the linewithdraws it from between the cam and the back plate, leaving it hangingloosely hooked over the projection b and thus keeping it from falling tothe ground and becoming soiled. No matter how elevated the holder,

a whip of the line will throw it over this projection, and being seizedat the proper place for this purpose it is easily kept from falling intothe dirt.

It will often be necessary to provide in a series of such holders or indifferent places some holders which are laterally open at the right sideand others which are open at the left side2'. 8., rights and lefts. Thiswill, of course, be done by casting the frames from right and leftpatterns; but to enable a single frame to be used either as a right orleft mounting for the always openly-depending cam I propose to providetwo projections b upon such casting, so that one or the other mayprojectupwardly,whichever way the cam may be mounted therein. Thus by drivingout the pivot of a holder originally service able as a right one the cammay be reversed to make it serve for a left.

I claim as my invention 1. In a line-holder, the combination of a backplate provided with a bracket projecting outwardly therefrom, a studprojecting upwardly from the end of the bracket at a distance from thesaid back plate, and an eccentric pivoted to said bracket in positionfor its periphery to coact with the back plate to grip an interposedline by upward movement of the eccentric, the throat-0pening formedbetween the periphery of the eccentric and the back plate being open atone side,

whereby a line thrown transversely across the upper surface of thebracket between said stud and back plate and drawn downward will entersaid throat laterally and will engage the eccentric, and upon release ofdrawing strain will rotate the eccentric upwardly, substantially asdescribed.

2. In a line-holder, the combination with a back plate provided with abracket having its outer end bent upon itself, the returned end of whichterminates at a distance from said back plate and is provided with anupturned portion forming a stud which projects above the upper surfaceof the bracket, an eccentric pivoted between the returned end and themain body of the bracket and arranged to coact with the back plate togrip a line, and a stop adapted to arrest the rotation of the eccentricin that position in which it is most remote from the back plate, wherebya line being drawn to tautness over the eccentric will be made to slipthereon and will rotate the eccentric backward to clamping position uponrelaxation of strain on said line, substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I affix mysignature in presence of two witnesses.

JOSHUA \V. GRAY. lVitnesses XVILLIs D. SHAFER, ALBERT H. GRAVES.

